Books, authors and all things bookish

Father Boyle makes good on the bestseller list

April 5, 2010 | 9:09
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Two new inspirational tales enter the hardcover nonfiction list this week, including local hero Father Gregory Boyle's "Tattoos on the Heart" at No. 8. The Jesuit priest is the founder of Homeboy Industries, the gang intervention and jobs organization. Boyle tells of his decades-long commitment to saving the lives of at-risk youth through job training, tattoo removal and employment, helping them to become contributing members of the community. Their Homegirl Salsas can even be found on the shelves of Ralphs grocery stores.

A bit of divine intervention also helps with diet tactics as “Women Food and God” (No. 6) explores the connection between women’s eating habits and their belief systems.

"Food Rules" had the No. 1 spot for paperback nonfiction. Michael Pollan's sensible eating manual knocked "Lost City of Z" out of the top spot. Food seems to be on many minds these days, with First Lady Michelle Obama's initiative to fight childhood obesity and British chef Jamie Oliver's "Food Revolution" debut on ABC.

"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" remains at No. 1 on the paperback fiction list while “The Girl Who Played with Fire,” makes it mark on both hardbacks (No. 8) and recently released paperback (No. 9). Readers now have more opportunities to acquaint themselves with the adventures of heroine Lisbeth Salander in time for the release of the third and final volume in Steig Larsson’s Millennium trilogy, “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest,” due in late May.

It pays to be a wimpy kid these days; author Jeff Kinney has three titles on the bestsellers list. The companion handbook, "The Wimpy Kid Movie Diary" (No. 14) offers a glimpse behind the scenes of making the film of the first book in the series, and his "Do It Yourself" journal (No. 11) holds steady in hardcover nonfiction.

Coming up: "A Captain's Story," by Charles Philips, due out Tuesday. Phillips, captain of the cargo ship Maersk Alabama, was held captive for five days by pirates on a tiny lifeboat off Somalia's coast last summer.